Such a shift lever mounting has been known from DE 38 08 272 C2 corresponding to U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,488 (which is incorporated herein by reference). To achieve accurate guidance of the shift lever over the selection path and the shifting path and to reduce the force needed for moving the shift lever, the shift lever is mounted flexibly around an axle in a shell-shaped spherical part of a universal joint. The universal joint is mounted--with pins, whose common axes are at right angles to the pivot axis of the shift lever in the spherical part of the universal joint--pivotably in recesses of a housing attached to the body. The universal joint is also mounted rotatably around the vertical axis over a limited angular range. The sliding selector shaft passes through the hinge mounting and is connected at its lower end to a coupling member. The coupling member allows for the transmission of the movement of the shift lever to the sliding selector shaft of the gear change box, so that the selecting movements of the shift lever are transmitted as a rotary movement, and the shifting movement as a linear displacement movement to one sliding selector shaft or to separate sliding selector shafts. Therefore, the coupling member must be resistant to extension and pressure, and be nonrotatable in both directions. Movements of the shift lever in the selection plane and in the shifting plane are bound to affect the respective other transmission movement of the coupling member or coupling members.